Rashid's Blog: A Place for Inquisitive Souls

The mythology side of Lunar New Year was originated from a monster ‘nian’ (meaning ‘year’).  The beast had a head like a lion and a body like a bull.  It lives in deep sea for the whole season.

Every spring around the lunar month or Chinese New Year it will come ashore to destroy farms and attack humans.  Villagers were helpless.  They discussed how to make the ‘nian’ stay away from them and leave them in peace.  So they started hanging red cloths and lighted red lanterns, pasting red couplet outside the houses in the hope to deter this ferocious animal.  Whenever, the animal appeared, the villagers make loud noises with drums and gongs, chopping vegetables /meats loudly and ignite fireworks to subdue the beast.  Somehow, ‘nian’ was back off by these intimidations.  It left the village and never returned again.

Thus, the villagers realized that…

This video is called Rediscovery of the New Zealand Storm-petrel: the original footage.

From BirdLife:

New Zealand Storm-petrel discovered breeding 50 km from Auckland City

Mon, Feb 25, 2013

Researchers are elated to find the sparrow-sized New Zealand Storm-petrel, thought extinct until 2003, is breeding on Little Barrier Island Hauturu in the Hauraki Gulf Marine Park. The team of researchers is led by Chris Gaskin – Important Bird Area Programme Manager for Forest & Bird (BirdLife in New Zealand) – and Dr Matt Rayner from the University of Auckland.

The seabird is listed as Critically Endangered by BirdLife on behalf of the IUCN Red List and finding the breeding site is vital for their conservation.

Three specimens of the diminutive 35g seabirds were collected off New Zealand in the 1800s and are held by museums overseas. Since its rediscovery, there has been speculation as…